Advisors and planners in today’s money market are increasingly steering investors toward commercial real estate. With the economy slowly returning to health, property investment is once again emerging as a positive vehicle for high net worth and family office investments.
The fact is, commercial real estate investments are accompanied by a variety of benefits not found in other investment types A foremost benefit is the presence of an entire team of commercial real estate specialists who can assist in advising and managing the investment to create the highest value on the investor’s behalf.
With this team in place in the real estate company, advisors have access to well-conceived annual budgets, plans and figures, which deliver a realistic understanding of where the investments are headed.
Based on these reports, advisors can monitor anticipated earnings and better prepare for overall estate planning. This increased stability, especially when compared to stock investments that can fluctuate daily, is often a welcome change for high net worth investors.
Amidst the benefits demonstrated by commercial real estate investments, a continued challenge for advisors and planners is identifying the right sponsor with which to pair on behalf of an investor.
The recent economic downturn weeded out many less experienced real estate investment companies, resulting in a smaller pool of real estate specialists from which to choose. The good news is that the real estate investment firms that survived are usually those with the strongest track records, and the most well-established investor services procedures.
These investor services procedures, in particular, are critical when it comes to ensuring the security of investors. Advisors and planners should seek out companies with the following attributes:
1. Availability and Responsiveness
In order to ensure that advisors and their investors are receiving the highest level of service, advisors and planners should seek out real estate investment companies that are full-service and completely accessible.
Investor services representatives should be available at any time of the day or night via phone, email, fax, etc. and should be able to easily adapt their communication method to the preference of each individual advisor.
In addition, a company that provides timely responses is essential for advisors who may need to quickly and efficiently access critical investment information during the investment cycle.
2. Accurate and Detailed Reporting
Accurate, timely and consistent reporting is simply paramount in real estate investing. These reports allow advisors to see exactly where their product is in the investment cycle, and to understand their projected future earnings.
Investors and their advisors who take part in a real estate ownership structure should expect to receive reports monthly and annually, and should see projected budgets at least once each year. In addition, each report should be extremely detailed, including factors such as rent rolls, occupancy and net income, all compared to the investment’s planned budget.
3. Strong Relationships With Registered Representatives
Because investors will work with their registered representative throughout the life of a real estate investment, a positive relationship between the rep and the investment company is crucial in order for a client to receive the highest level of service.
Real estate investment companies that can provide these services to registered representatives will allow the advisors to provide stellar service to their investors.
4. Experience Working With Families
Amid today’s prevalence of family wealth, advisors and planners should be cognizant of how any selected real estate investment company handles family members involved in an investment.
Real estate investment firms should be experienced in working with these investment structures, and should be knowledgeable about the specific needs of family investors.
5. An Ironclad Track Record Of Privacy Protection
Personal information is extremely sensitive and vulnerable, and real estate investment companies must be exceedingly protective of investors’ information.
This protection should certainly extend to family investments, and advisors and planners should ensure that their selected real estate investment firm mandates that every individual in a family is authorized before the firm provides any access to investment information.
Overall, advisors and planners should confirm that their selected real estate investment firm upholds the highest levels of security when working with sensitive financial information.
As advisors and planners continue to navigate the improving economy, the opportunity to help investors build value through commercial real estate investments will continue to grow. By identifying investment companies with strong investor services now, advisors and planners can better position themselves to leverage these opportunities for their clients.
Victoria White serves as Director, Investor Services for Passco Companies, LLC. She is a real estate and communications expert with more than two decades of experience.
